Tracker Boats...NEVER AGAIN

[docIN]

Took my Tracker Deep V-17 boat out of storage this spring and put it in the water and noticed a lot of water in the boat. Spoke to the dealer and they checked it out. They found either 19 rivets missing/missing heads/or loose. The dealer said it must go back to the manufacture for repairs (covered under warranty). Now after three months, I am still getting the run around. No return phone calls. The dealer says he can't loan me a boat. Tracker says they can't get me another boat (loaner). And from what I gather, they still have not even started repairs. What's a guy (fisherman) to do?

[Todd]

Buy a Lund!

[Neal/CO]

That is the exact boat I have been trying to convince my wife we can afford. I don't blame you for being furious. I can see cutting a small Co. like Fig Rig some slack, on a $100.00 order, but not $10,000. This is way beyond poor customer service, What if you started taking on water miles from the dock or shore?

[walleye mike]

Well docIN; Here are a few thoughts
1. Get, and keep, the pressure on your dealer, he should stand behind your satisfaction
2. Demand to be put in contact with the Tracker Field Rep in your area
3. Try a posting, as submitted here, on the WC Pro Q&A Board. I think a few of the pro's there are sponsored by Tracker.

Good luck

Walleye Mike

[Weyes1]

I don't blame you. I also have a Tracker Pro Deep V-17. I haven't experienced the problems you have but the Evinrude motor that came on mine sucks. Sputters or stalls at take off. Also the fit and finnish is really poor. If you can afford it go with the Glass boats. They handle much better and don't catch the wind the aluminum boats do.
I take on a little water but then again I probably have loosened a few rivets from the poundings I have put my boat through. Kansas winds make the Lakes rough. Seems like it is either blowing hard or not at all. Makes fishing rough too.
Keep the pressure on Tracker. I have had ny troubles with BP with their mail order, if I had problems with my boat, I doubt I would ever spend another penny with them.
Good Luck!
Weyes1

[Psaras]

I also had a Tracker Deep V17 in 1993. It had a terrible ride in rough water resulting in being soaked due to the spray. The only good that came of it was that it was stolen when I returned it to the dealer for adjustments. I bought a Lund Pro Fisherman Deluxe in 1993 and have been very pleased,plus no loose or missing rivets to date.

[Fish4u]

Lund has had my boat since Feb 3 for a repaint.
That 4 months just to paint a boat. Lund makes a great boat but they are not perfect.

[eyedoc]

I think it comes down to "You get what you pay for." You can't expect to buy a cheaper made boat and think it will perform like a Lund, or any other well made boat. It looks like a very expensive lesson to learn.

[bill]

AMEN always buy the best not the rest.

[brw]

Doc:
Here's an idea. Print these posts and send them to the rep/company. maybe seeing all these negative posts will shame them into action. It can't hurt. If it works, score one for the power of the Net and this site.

[magna19]

well,let me put it to you this way,i took mine to the factory personally in oct.i went and picked it up in march,and to put it quite frankly,they did a poor job.i still have leaking rivets,and a gouged up boat where they drilled the rivets out of the sides.also where they pulled the decks up they butchered them,and they said they were going to replace them,and didnt.

get on the phone and call them asap.call and talk to the head of customer service,dont talk to no peon there.i talked to 2 peons,got no where.i told them to get there boss/manager on the phone asap,in other words now.

here are a few#'s 417-866-4242,fax #417-777-2201.also people to talk to,mike nichols,he got the balls rolling on my problem.

also try 417-873-5900,talk to ken burroughs.

look at what they did to my boat,#####://members.aol.com/nitroowners.go to grabbag.if you have a weat stomach,dont look at them.it made me sick to see it when i got it home...and i traveled 2000 miles round trip 2 times to get the ''exelent ''warranty repair too!!

let me know how you make out....

[cisco]

Here we go again with "get what you pay for." I guess now that gas is pushing $2 a gallon it is better than last year at $1.20 - Right? I have owned four Lunds (have one 14 ft now) and several other brands -- and I own a Tracker Targa 18. I will put the Targa up to any of the long-time favorites for comfort, handling, design, and quality control.
Incidentally, of all the vehicles I've owned since my first car (a 41 DeSoto) the beggest lemon was a pricey '89 GMC Suburban. On the basis of price, it should have been my best vehicle to that date. I've since done much better with full-sized Ford Conversion Vans. They don't give vans away, but they're cheaper than any of the SUVs with any equipment on them.

My two-year old Tracker has done all I've asked of it from Lake Michigan to Sakakawea and points in between.

[Slameye]

When you talk about gas, you are comparing two things that are the exact same thing. A lund and a tracker are NOT the same thing. Why does a lund have a much higher resale value? Because it will "over all" last longer. Why does a Honda Accord have a better resale value than a Ford Taurus? Because it is built better. Can you get a Taurus cheaper, Yes. There is NO way you say that a tracker is on the same level as a lund. People do like the trackers, thats obvious, they sell a lot of them. Take a poll of all boaters who have experience with both and you will find that non-partial people agree that tracker doesn't stand up to the competition. How else can you explain the higher resale value of the lund? I think that a tracker is a good boat for the money, just don't expect it to perform like a more expensive boat. It won't.

[AquaMan]

LAST EDITED ON May-25-00 AT 09:36AM (CST)[p]No one can ever say you are nit picking. That has got to be the most compelling evidence I have ever seen for a very incompetent job. I wish you all the best in your quest for a quality repair job. I have to think that any handful of guys on here could have done a better job with nominal experience. Have you considered taking it to a local rigger/repair shop and sending the bill to Tracker? I realize that there is some risk, but maybe that will be your only avenue for the quality issue.

One of my buddies just got his back last week and has similar issues. He is trading it in after this season! He does not want to miss any more time on the water this season.

Best regards.

AquaMan~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[magna19]

well,as for the local rigger,or warranty center,i did,and they come off with the stringers are cracked,they said they pulled up the deck,when in fact they didnt.but then i told tracker i would do the repair where i worked,a trailer body shop where we rivet truck bodies back together,but they wouldnt go that route.saying how do they know the job was done.

i figured the factory would do the job right,well,i was wrong.but they did say they would do right by me.it will be in writing too.i specified that.also they will pay to take it to the factory and return it to me when i am ready to,and add 2 yrs onto the hull warranty.

as for the boat in general.i fish lake ontario in the worst weather,2-4 fters,and it keeps me dry.i caught some nice walleyes,salmon,bass and trout out of it.i guess tracker has a bad rep.but i have had it for 5 yrs and i kind of like it,it will let me into electric only lakes here,and fish the big waters of ontario too.

bad mouth tracker all you want,i still will own this boat as long as she will stay floating,or until a better deal comes up.

i have no decals on the boat,only magna19 bow rider on the side.when people ask what make it is,and i say tracker,i get the strangest looks,but i always get a nice boat out of it!!

[fishincentralont]

Go princecraft I neglected my boat one winter and it had 8 inches of ice in the haul, 5 years later it is still water tight

[NavyVet]

Wow!!! I've had a Pro Team-165 I bought and picked up right out of Bass Pro in Springfield, in 1999. I still have that bass boat in my garage right now. It had a MotorGuide trolling motor which fried out the electrical on, and the winch on the trailer broke, both while under warranty, and was repaired without question or delay. The boat itself still is FULLY functional as the day I bought it. Here's wishing you luck with the Deep-V!

[perchjerker]

Go princecraft I neglected my boat one winter and it had 8 inches of ice in the haul, 5 years later it is still water tight

bringing up a 10 year old thread may be a record lol

[dman617]

I was wondering if he got his boat back with the repairs done properly? 10 years later, I hope so.

I think it is a record for replying to a decade old post.
D

[muskyman73]

I owned a 97 ProV-17 Tournament for 11 years. I got it brand new as a bank repo. It was riveted as well. I did alot of trailering with it and immediately noticed the little bit of water in it when I would pull the drain plug. My dad and I went through it and replaced the rivets as needed and it was good to go. I could have taken it to the local tracker dealer, but not for stuff like that. Why, when I could do it myself and know that it was done right. All too often the dealer or even the boat companies, will do what little they can or just enough to get by. I have seen it time and time again. I know that a warranty is what you pay for, and some have the extended warranties, but getting things done yourself these days seems to be about the only way you can be sure it was done right. We did all of our own work on that boat. We ripped up the floor boards, put in a deck extension, replaced the trolling motor mounting area, installed a new bench seat - all things that I am sure the dealer would have screwed up on, or charged us the high and mighty dollar. But I do agree in that you bought a new boat and this is what you have to deal with - that is complete crap. Totally uncalled for. I sold that boat , not because of the repairs, but because I need more freeboard here on lake michigan. It did run like a top though.

[2Labs]

bringing up a 10 year old thread may be a record lol

Brian, until you posted that, I thought I was reading a current thread! I never looked at the dates! :bigsmile:


I wonder what made a Princecraft owner resurrect this thing?

I also wonder what happened with the boat owned by the original poster. I hope he got his problem resolved.